-Or at least that is what the FBI will have you believe. 36 years ago D.B. (Dan) Cooper jumped out of Northwest Jet airliner north of Portland Oregon with $200,000 in stolen money. He boarded a flight from Portland to Seattle where he called a stewardess (yes stewardess, back in 1972, there was no such thing as a “flight attendant”) and revealed a briefcase with wires and red colored sticks. He demanded $200,000 and four parachutes.
The Plane landed and the other 36 passengers were exchanged for the money and the parachutes. Shortly after takeoff on a rainy, pitch-black night, he simply instructed pilots to “fly to Mexico” and bailed shortly thereafter. Authorities believe he acted alone.

Over the years the FBI has concluded that Cooper was not a former paratrooper or expert skydiver, sighting that no expert would take the risk of jumping with a sewn shut reserve chute, 200 mile an hour headwinds, and rain into the pitch black night. The legend lives at hundreds sport parachute drop zones around the country to this day, and the hit series “Prison Break” even included an inmate that was hinted to be Mr. Cooper.

Descriptions of the man were also fairly blank as most said he was 5’10” to six feet tall, in his mid 40’s with brown eyes. In 2001 the FBI discovered DNA from a tie purchased at JC Penny’s department store that is alleged to have been worn by DB Cooper during the hijacking. In 1980, a young boy found a package with $5800 of the ransom money.
Special Agent Carr of the Federal Bureau of Investigation feels it is unlikely that Cooper survived the jump.